1. Field
An air conditioner is disclosed herein.
2. Background
Air conditioners are home appliances that maintain indoor air in a proper state according to use and purpose. For example, such an air conditioner may maintain indoor air in a cold state in summer and in a warm state in winter. Further, the air conditioner may maintain a humidity of the indoor air and purify the indoor air to a pleasant and clean state.
In more detail, the air conditioner has a refrigerant cycle in which compression, condensation, expansion, and evaporation processes of a refrigerant are repeatedly performed. Thus, a cooling or heating operation of the air conditioner may be performed to cool or heat the indoor air according to the refrigerant cycle.
Air conditioners may be classified into split type air conditioners, in which indoor and outdoor units or devices are separated from each other, and integral type air conditioners, in which indoor and outdoor units or devices are integrally coupled to each other as a single unit or device according to whether the indoor and outdoor units are separated from each other. The outdoor unit may include an outdoor heat exchanger that heat-exchanges with external air, and the indoor unit may include an indoor heat exchanger that heat-exchanges with indoor air.
When a refrigerant cycle performs a cooling operation, the outdoor heat exchanger may serve as a condenser and the outdoor heat exchanger may serve as an evaporator. On the other hand, when the refrigerant cycle performs a heating operation, the indoor heat exchanger may serve as the condenser and the outdoor heat exchanger may serve as the evaporator.
An electronic unit or device to drive the air conditioner may be disposed within the outdoor unit. The electronic unit may include a plurality of control components. While the air conditioner is driven, a large amount of heat may be generated by the electronic unit. The electronic unit may generate heat having a temperature of about 70° C. to about 80° C.
In the air conditioner according to the related art, if the electronic unit is not sufficiently cooled, malfunction of the control components may occur. As a result, the function (heat exchange operation) of the air conditioner may not be sufficiently performed, or the air conditioner may break down.
To cool the electronic unit, a board having high thermal conductivity may be disposed on or at a side of the electronic unit, and then a device, for example, a heat-sink, that heat-exchanges with external air may be provided in the air conditioner according to the related art. However, the heat-sink may have a limitation in that an effect thereof is limited in an area in which external air has a relatively high temperature (for example, about 50° C.).
Thus, to solve the above-described limitation, technology, in which a cooling device to allow a refrigerant within the refrigeration cycle to flow may be provided at a side of the electronic unit to heat-exchange a refrigerant with the electronic unit, thereby cooling the electronic unit, has been introduced in recent years. The cooling device may include a refrigerant tube, for example.
The cooling device may be maintained in a state in which it is coupled to the electronic unit. If repairing of the electronic unit or replacement of the control components is needed, the cooling device or the refrigerant tube has to be removed. Then, after the repairing or replacement is finished, the cooling device or the refrigerant tube has to be reassembled, and then a refrigerant has to be recharged.